WASHINGTON, Oct 25: Pakistan may delay a deal to buy F-16 fighters jets from the US because of the devastating earthquake that killed more than 50,000 people, Ambassador Jehangir Karamat told Dawn on Tuesday.

He, however, denied reports that Pakistan was reconsidering the deal. “Right now, the earthquake is our first priority, but there’s no question of reconsidering the deal,” said Ambassador Karamat, who is also a former chief of the Pakistan Army.

He said President Bush and the US government were committed to the deal and the US administration had already sent an informal notification to Congress about the deal. “So how can we reconsider the deal? Just the timing may be delayed,” said Gen Karamat.

A US official also confirmed Gen Karamat’s position on the F-16 deal, saying that Pakistan had requested a delay but was not reconsidering the deal.

Meanwhile, the White House also delayed a public-private partnership of major US corporations that was to be launched on Tuesday.